Firefighters have been ordered to undergo sensitivity training after allegations of harassment made by a gay couple living next to the North End fireplace, while town residents reacted last week.
Tim Carter and Peter deVries filed harassment charges in April after firefighters coming back from a party allegedly threw rocks at their house and hurled anti-gay slurs. The couple called the police and allegedly endured 12 minutes of harassment, threats, and obscenities while waiting for them to arrive.
According to Carter, the April 25 incident was a culmination of two years of harassment, rumored to be fueled at times by drinking in the firehouses. Carter also said that he had filed a complaint in February with a fire official that members of the North End house had been throwing used condoms into their back yard.
“I tried to call the chief, so I called the Municipal Building and got the runaround about talking to the chief,” Carter said of the February complaint. “I thought he would handle it in-house. I was trying to get them to get control of them without getting the mayor or police involved. I thought they’d listen to the chief. I didn’t want to hang anybody out to dry.”
Town officials and neighbors are keeping quiet as they wait for the official verdict from the state’s Division of Criminal Justice Bias Crime Unit’s investigation into the alleged incident. Neighbors living on Schopman Drive refused to comment, stating that they were advised not to talk to the press after the incident.
Police Chief Dennis Corcoran said that any complaints against the firehouse will remain confidential while the investigation takes place.
Rumors have been swirling since the incident. One rumor claims that Mayor Dennis Elwell and Deputy Mayor John Reilly had made attempts to close the firehouse, but had been bullied in to reopening it by the firefighters themselves. However, last week, both denied that story.
“The mayor and council don’t micromanage the fire department,” said Reilly. “If the chiefs had a discipline problem, and they couldn’t resolve it in the Fire Department, they’d come to the mayor and council, but that has not happened before.”
Elwell confirmed that he was on the scene following the incident because firefighters had called him. The police did close down the firehouse except for firefighting activities only. Elwell said the police made this determination.
“I had nothing to do with closing the firehouse down,” Elwell said. “The police closed the house down. It was the police officers’ assessment, not mine.”
According to Elwell, the chiefs of police met at 8 a.m. the following morning and decided to close the firehouse for all activities other than emergency or fire-related. A week later, they opened the building up for training. Immediately following the incident, the police department did a review, asking people questions. Then the state attorney general took over the case.
“There were concerns at the local and county level that would have been a conflict of interest involving the police investigating the allegations of the firehouse, one local agency investigating the other,” said John Haggerty, spokesperson for the state Division of Criminal Justice. “It is rightfully being investigated on the state level. We have the expertise.”
Haggerty said that he cannot speculate about possible penalties before the investigation is complete. “The Office of Bias Crime is looking to see if there are any violations of state criminal statute,” Haggerty said. “The investigation has not yet confirmed the allegations and to what extent.” Haggerty said that charges being investigated include bias crime, harassment, assault, and terroristic threats.
Carter said that the local police have been helpful and professional since they became involved.
Alcohol consumption still permitted under certain conditions
While an ordinance was passed in 2001 banning drinking in Secaucus firehouses, a procedure exists that allows the firefighters to take themselves off duty and obtain a permit for alcohol-related events there such as birthdays, christenings, and other parties where alcohol is permitted. Anyone attending the party is prohibited from going on call.
Despite rumors that there may have been recent complaints filed about drinking in the North End firehouse, Town administrator Anthony Iacono said that the town has not received any official complaints about drinking at the North End Station recently.
“Since this incident, I’m hearing that these people were noisy, so who is making these complaints, and who are they making them to?” Iacono asked. “From the town’s perspective, we have no formal or informal complaints.” According to Elwell, the Fire Department will hold off its investigation until the state investigation is completed. “I think the concerns were that if there were two entities asking questions at the same time, they would contaminate the investigation,” Elwell said.
Since the case became public, Carter says there have been minor incidents of people driving by yelling slurs. “I have been so happy here,” he said. “I don’t know who to trust now.”
Elwell said that the town will support the findings of the state investigation.
“It would be unfair for all parties to comment on that,” he said. “The town of Secaucus has a very good Fire Department that has always done a wonderful job for our community, but that does not condone any wrong doing by anyone.”